The U.S. International Trade Commission began a patent infringement probe on Wednesday after ZiiLabs charged that several firms were importing products to the United States in violation of its patents on graphics processors and DDR memory controllers.

The ITC said the products at issue in the investigation included GPUs, processors, systems-on-chip, smartphones, laptops, televisions, Bluray players, and gaming systems. It identified 17 firms whose products it wanted to examine, including Advanced Micro Devices Inc, Lenovo Group Ltd, LG Electronics Inc, MediaTek Inc, Motorola Mobility, Qualcomm Inc and Sony Corp.

ZiiLabs' complaint requests that the USITC issue a limited exclusion order and a cease and desist order.

As always, by instituting such an investigation (337-TA-1037), the USITC has not yet made any decision on the merits of the case. The USITC's Chief Administrative Law Judge will assign the case to one of the USITC's administrative law judges (ALJ), who will schedule and hold an evidentiary hearing. The ALJ will make an initial determination as to whether there is a violation of section 337; that initial determination is subject to review by the ITC.